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Saturday, July 27, 2013

A...Celtic...Lament

I have been asked
this question more than once, "Are you going back to Ireland for your
Golden Jubilee?" The answer is, a reluctant "no." That does not
mean I will not be connected with land of my ancestors, The Celts.My Celtic heritage, and all the gifts it
bestows, has become more and more of a presence over these last number of
years. A presence that was absent, sad to say, for many of the previous years. I now have to admit, confession is good for
the soul, that the lack of my understanding of Celtic Spirituality, resulted in
unnecessary pain, and sorrow. My pain
and sorrow was of necessity, felt by others as well. For that I am heartily sorry. Everything, at that time, was either black or
white. There was no willingness to understand the baggage of personal journey, with
all that it brought to each person. The imperative to see each person, as a
person to be listened to, not some impersonal object to be judged, was a gift
that was coming. Thank God, the new
Spirit which came with the Second Vatican Council was The Spirit of kindness, understanding,
and compassion. The reforms brought us
back to a new, and a more vibrant, life giving, understanding of The Mystery. The Mystery revealed in the life, and ministry
of Jesus, who became The Christ, was none other than, The Living Father-God of
the same Jesus Christ. We were
introduced to the historical en-fleshed, oh so human Jesus. In this human Jesus, it was revealed the
fullness of The Divine One. If I was to
know The Unknown, and Unknowable, all I had to do was to immerse myself in the
reality of The Carpenter Shepherd from Nazareth. That was 50 years ago, and it
is only now I am becoming more and more aware of what was being offered at that
time. The proclamation of that Good News
has continued over years, but not without opposition. The Gospel proclaimed in its purity, always
finds opposition. The Gospel it appears,
only thrives in opposition. The
persecuted church is the spiritual healthy church. Look at history and see when the church has
been most vibrant. A vibrant faith
flowers in persecution. That is so true for our individual faith journey as
well.

I got a little sidetracked, so back to
what has happened and unfortunately is happening right now in our church. The Second Vatican Council did happen, even
though there are well meaning members of the hierarchy and laity that act as if
it never was a reality. Like all
councils, called by the Pope in session, it had the guidance of The Holy
Spirit. What happened was under the
guidance of The Holy Spirit, no matter which way we may want to cut it. For those who deny, or actively work against
those reforms, and the evolving theology are not "Building up The Body of
Christ. They are, to put it bluntly, warring AGAINST the workings of The Holy
Spirit. The fear-full actions of those
who wish to "reform" the previous reforms are adding nothing to the
well being of our church, The Mystical Body of Christ.They are, despite their good intentions, making
the growth of The Body more difficult in a world that is so diametrically
opposed to all that of the authentic teaching of the Gospel. The demands of the Gospel are such, we are
always coming up short. We have to face
our own limitations on a daily basis. Despite
our best intentions we have to face the fact, The Real Gospel imperatives are
too, too much. This is where the miracle
of grace comes in. Thank God, our
Gracious Father-God sees into our hearts, and at least sees our willingness to
become, even though at present we are not, the best bearers of the Good News. This willingness is enough for God. Once we show our willingness, grace takes
over, and we are in for the ride of a lifetime. We become what we desire, so be WARNED. We are setting ourselves up for hard, demanding,
tough work. A work which by ourselves we
cannot accomplish. On top of that we have to face the outside enemies, who are conspiring,
with all likeminded forces, to oppose by any means necessary the coming of The
Kingdom. With the coming of The Kingdom,
their kingdoms of "power, property and prestige" will have to go, but
not without a fight.

There will not be just a fight, there
will be a war. A war that is being waged
within the souls of each one of us, as well as in the world we are traveling
through. So then, we are all caught up
in a death struggle. We are not the
first to experience such a death struggle, the death struggle of Jesus, through
which He became The Christ Of God, carries with it this great hope. In the long run death will never be the
victor. In His victory over death, The
Christ has brought to you and I a new level of hope-full seeing. We now see
that all death is, is the threshold over which we must all pass into a reality
that words cannot describe. In our
little every day death-resurrection experiences we

get a glimpse, just a
taste of that "which eye as not seen, or ear heard, or it has not even
dawned on us what is waiting for us in the fullness of life. We have the option to life in the freedom that
The Resurrection brings us, or cower in fear. When we live out of fear we leave ourselves
open to becoming fully fledged members of spite-full, fear-filled opposition. There are those who are actively opposing the
workings of The Holy Spirit. We must remember, even if they do not, they are
STILL being called each and every moment, and Who is doing this calling?The very same Holy Spirit, Whose works they
are opposing, is STILL calling each one of us to be the living, life enhancing,
presence of The Prodigal, Compassionate Father-God. A Lover Who is persistent. The Shepherd God Who is ALWAYS seeking out and
searching for, the lost sheep which is you and I.

This was ThePresence I was seeking. A Presence, I have come to believe that finds
a dwelling place, not outside of me, but within the depths of my being, keeping
me in being. It is within This Presence,
"I live and move and have my being," I cannot exist apart, no one
can. Like St. Augustine, I was looking outside,
where it could not be found. Like
Augustine, I was looking "in all the wrong places," forthat which was dwelling in the depths of my being,
keeping me in being. That reality I was
able to give

lip service to, and
that was all. I had not suffered enough.
Now I see That Presence was there, all
the time, calling in a gentle, tender, whisper. Why did I not hear The Call? For me and for so
many more that gentle whisper drowned out by the cacophony of noises alien to Its
will, and purposes. The ears of my heart, and soul, were deafened. It has taken a long time for the healing of my
hearing to take place.This healing,
like all regular healing, has been for me a very slow process. Yes it has taken a long time for my eyes to be
truly opened so that the real "seeing," may take place. That
"seeing" has gone hand in hand with the rediscovery of the richness,
and gentleness of Celtic Spirituality. It is only now, after many, many years of wandering,
and wondering, I seem to have found a home. A place where I can dwell in some peace and
harmony. I get every now and then, a
brief insight into what the dream, The Aisling of God, does have for each
living person. His dream for all of us
is that "We would have life and have it to

the fullest." To live life, and live it to the fullest fullness,
is a great challenge for us who are "spiritual beings immersed in the
human experience."